STRONG DADS! Doing Real Life
STRONG DADS is hosted by Merrill Hutchinson and Kyle Crofford. STRONG DADS strives to be an informative and entertaining discussion for all men but in particular, husbands and fathers. Our message is straight shooting, challenging, and encouraging to men that desire to follow their calling to be the man God designed them to be. We make no apologies for grounding our message in the Word of God. We also admit to being flawed. We readily admit to being sinners and challenged in many ways, however, we also know we are loved and called by God to be Strong Dads! With the help of local sponsors and the word spreading through listeners like you, Strong Dads is committed to building and strengthening families. The mission is to equip and empower dads to be all God created them to be.
STRONG DADS! Doing Real Life
Nothing's Easy, Nothing's Cheap - 5 mindset changes to get you through a difficult project. Ep 232
Have you ever found yourself in the middle of a mess that seemed to get bigger the longer you're into it? Around our house we call those situations, "JACK POTS". Obviously, using the term in a facetious way, there is nothing good about these jack pots.
Hutch open's his latest "JACK POT" up for all of you to see. He recently bought a camper with the idea that the family could get back into a little camping. He didn't want to spend too much money on the camper as they aren't sure how much they will actually be able to use it. So, he bought a used camper, AS IS!
Once he began to dig into the camper he realized he had more on his hands than he originally bargained for. No turning back now.
Hutch walks through the important mindset changes that can help you get through difficult challenges. How you approach the challenge can make all the difference.
Feel free to share your "jack pot" experiences as we all could stand to learn a little from your approach.
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Casey's is a premier garden center and gift shop located in Lawrenceburg, indiana. Casey's offers a wide selection of plants, landscaping materials, home and garden decor and gifts for every occasion. Casey's is committed to providing exceptional service, a unique shopping experience and value to every customer. Stop in and see what makes Casey's so unique, located at 21481 State Line Road, lawrenceburg, indiana, or call 812-537-3800. Let Casey's help you add beauty to your home. All right guys, welcome to Strong Dads. Have I got a show for you today? So this is Strong Dads Doing Real Life, and you're going to get a first hand glimpse at what real life looks like around here at the Hutchinson House. So let me give you just a little background so you know what is happening here.
Speaker 1:Linda and I have always we used to camp and then we got out of camping because our kids got really busy and we thought, well, we'd like to maybe get back into camping, but we're still really busy and we don't want to spend a lot of money on campers and all that kind of stuff. So we thought, well, let's buy a used camper and let's just get started. We got a few places we want to go. Let's get started and see how that works and just see if we're in it, if we like it again, okay, if it works for us. So I've been looking around for campers for the last year or so and I finally came across the camper that I thought you know this is going to. This would probably meet our needs in terms of size, in terms of it's light enough that my truck pulls it without any problem and it just it's not going to cost me too much. Okay, so we pulled the trigger and we bought the camper.
Speaker 1:Now the gentleman was super nice, super nice. He said listen, you know, it's been sitting for a while. We kind of stopped using it because his kids were in a place where they couldn't get out as much, and so he's like you know it's. It's kind of you get what you get here. I'm like you know I get it, I get it completely. So you know as is. So, anyway, we looked at the bones of the camper and they were solid. The shell is solid. I went underneath, the underneath carriage is solid. All of the floor joists and the truss are solid. So I got it home and I started to go through it and I'm going to describe to you what my father-in-law and I refer to as a jackpot, and that's a bit of a facetious term. It's not a jackpot like you just won a million dollars. It's a jackpot like wah, wah, wah, wah. Now I'm going to show you what I got into and totally the laughs on me. We'll see what I can do with this, all right, but I'm going to take you inside and let you see what I'm up against.
Speaker 1:Check out Camper Life with Merle Hutchinson, all right. So you guys, first off, you can kind of get an idea. You see that toilet there. You see that toilet. All right, I'm going to explain a little bit about that toilet in just a second, but just bear with me, okay. So from the outside it's a 23-foot camper. It's a hybrid camper. It's got the ends pull out for the bunks to basically extend out, so it gives you several feet on both ends. So that's kind of cool. We were able to sleep like six, seven, eight people in here, which that's great for the grandkids and all that right.
Speaker 1:A couple of things I knew right off the bat. I knew there was a fender missing on one side. I believe it's over on this other side. So not a big deal. I mean, we can get those replacement fenders. So there, you can see, there's a little flare fender that's missing right there. Eh, not a big deal. In fact, I've already ordered them. No issues there. All right.
Speaker 1:The awning how about that awning? Guys, you like that awning? Isn't that nice? Yeah, I don't know if you can see that very well or not, but it's all rotted, and I knew that going in. And, but it's all rotted, and I knew that going in, and so I already bought that, getting ready to try to put that back together.
Speaker 1:All right, but let's go inside and let's see what the great indoors look like. All right, so you can see it is a construction zone. Right now it's a construction zone, it's a 2013, so it's dated in that way. But as I started going through, things started to notice that we had some issues. You see that that's rot, that's all rot. That I dug out already. And it's from the hinge that's on the outside, where that uh, that bunk flap folds out and that hinge, the caulking failed on it and so water got in there. So that's one of my first that I'm going to try to jump in there and see what I can do.
Speaker 1:Okay, all right, but wait, there's more. Can do? Okay, all right. But wait, there's more. Let's walk through here. And there was a soft spot in the floor, and the soft spot was a matter of well, we thought. We thought maybe they had hit something, and I already started to to work on this a bit. But it turns out that at one point in time I don't know how well you can see that at one point in time, somebody left this right here, the vent hood wide open for an expended period of time, and it rained and rained, and rained and rained, and guess what the camper did? It filled up with water. All right. Now I didn't quite know that when I bought it I heard that there was a little bit of water damage, but uh, anyway, water sat in here for a long time and so it rotted this entire part of the floor. All right, pretty nice. In the meantime, there's a sunlight here, and the sunlight also had a crack in it, which, by the way, I didn't know any of this. Like, if you looked up at the ceiling, the ceiling was just a white ceiling and it looked okay. But when I started pressing around, I saw a lot of soft spots. In fact, my finger just went right through the ceiling because it was rotten, so tore all that out, and that's going to be another part of our work. Let me come down here so not to gross you out.
Speaker 1:And again, like us men, when we're doing projects, sometimes things come out of our mouth that maybe are not appropriate for the TV. But the toilet was here and I had to take the toilet off. And when I took the toilet off, I was kind of blown away by what I saw. You might say I had a shit show. Yeah, it was a mess here. The toilet had not been cleaned out. It was a mess here. The toilet had not been cleaned out, the black water tank had not been cleaned, and I don't even want to know how long it had not been cleaned.
Speaker 1:So, guys, besides that, originally when I first bought, I realized I was just going to paint and I was going to replace the floor anyway, just the, the linoleum. I was going to replace that. So I knew I had some painting and a little bit of floor covering work to do. But now I got a whole lot more on my hands, and so this old jackpot here is going to keep me busy for a while. All right, let's walk around. I'll show you a little bit of the the other goodies. See that. That's why that toilet's sitting there, because it's not ready to be put to use yet. All right, as we walk around, overall, not bad. A little bit of work to just put some buffing compound on there and I think we can bring the color back, the sheen back to that surface, but anyway, I want to share with you, okay.
Speaker 1:So what do I do when I find myself in the middle of a jackpot like this? So let me put my camera up and let's get to it. All right, so here we are, we are in jackpot land and, you know, looks like a great weekend of camping. The weather today happens to be beautiful. I'm out in my driveway, but I got a mess on my hands, and so probably 20 years ago, if this would have happened, I would have been really super frustrated and, oh my gosh, what did I get myself into. But my whole attitude is completely different and maybe some of the things I can share with you will help you, because I know every one of you guys have gotten yourself into a jackpot and they can really weigh you down. In fact, I've seen marriages break up over jackpots maybe not quite like this one, but things that get pretty heavy.
Speaker 1:So I wanna walk through and hopefully maybe there's some things that we can talk about and work on your mindset. And I don't know, you haven't seen this finished project yet. So next time you see or hear from me I might have all my hair pulled out and maybe Linda and I are not talking anymore. But prayerfully, that's not going to happen, all right. First thing, guys. First thing you know, when you take on any project, when you take on any project, I don't care what it is, I don't care if it's replacing an electrical outlet, whether you're painting a room, I don't care what it is. Go in't care if it's replacing an electrical outlet, whether you're painting a room, I don't care what it is.
Speaker 1:Go in with this mindset from the very get-go Nothing's easy and nothing's cheap. Just put that in your head right off the get-go. Here's what I used to do oh, I can do that job probably in about 20 minutes. Oh, I can do that job, I could get that done in about an hour. No, that is a lie. That's a lie based on arrogance and lack of wisdom. Okay, and so I've come to realize that even if I'm changing a light bulb, I go. Well, you know, nothing's easy and nothing's cheap. Let's tackle this thing. The good thing about going in with that mindset is you're seldom disappointed and you can be pleasantly surprised. So that's why that's just helpful, guys. It's helpful to be able to go. You know what? That light bulb only took three minutes to change. That's pretty cool. I like that and I have a good day. So, nothing's easy, nothing's cheap, all right.
Speaker 1:Another thing when you're in a project, so many things have to be right, not with the project, but with this, right here, with that head of yours. And so I've learned that there are times when I just have to walk away, maybe walk away from not even starting the project to begin with. Right, like if life is crazy and busy and all of a sudden you're going to take on a huge project. Maybe that's bad timing and maybe it's a better thing to just walk away from it. It's probably not going to be your last opportunity ever to see that type of project right. So, knowing when to walk away, but within the project itself, I know that when I get tired, when I get hungry, when I'm just wore out or stressed, I just got to walk away.
Speaker 1:I've struggled sometimes with dealing with a particular problem and for the life of me, like I can't figure it out. I can't get a motor to work, I can't figure out how to fix something, and the longer I stick around it, the more frustrated I get. I've been able to walk away. I've only learned this. Walk away, maybe even come back the next day. Come back the next day. It's a different day, and I've seen the solution just pop just like that, like oh my gosh, I spent two hours fighting that yesterday and I figured it out in 10 minutes today. All right, so know when to walk away. It's not like I quit, it's like no, I got to regroup. I need to set up a new plan.
Speaker 1:All right, here's another one, and this is important, especially if you're in a marriage. You know when you get into a project, especially if it was a project that was more of you. You drove this and, by the way, this project was driven by both Linda and I, so it makes it a whole lot more doable around the house when things aren't going well. But if the project is just yours, and the project is not, or it's more, than you thought it was going to be, I'm just going to tell you, swallow your pride and admit your shortcoming in that decision right off the bat. You know what, hon? I think I bit off more than I can chew. I think I've got a big one here. I think this is going to be a challenge. Whatever it is, confess it early, own it early. That way you're not playing this, this keep away game from the truth Like no, no, this is going to be fine, this is going to be fun. And in the meantime, your wife is just rolling her eyes and she's losing trust in your decision making. All right. So please understand that I need her on my side, and so, when I'm going through a tough project, I need her to know exactly what my mind's going through, so that I can have her on my team and have a little empathy for the size of the project or the challenges of the project, versus her saying you know what, this is your problem, you figure it out All right.
Speaker 1:So don't lie to yourself. Admit the mistakes or shortcomings that you made. Remember, I always say that it's not a mistake unless you don't learn from it. And so there's some things in here, this camper, that you saw that I might say oh, wow, that was a mistake? I don't know. You know, hopefully, here in a few weeks I can show you the before and afters and maybe you'll see. Hmm, maybe it wasn't a mistake, I don't know. You know, a few weeks from now I might go. This was maybe a match and some gasoline might be the best solution to this problem.
Speaker 1:All right, when you are walking into a project. All right, you're taking on a project. Have your plan in mind. Make the decision to go or to not to go. Get off of the fence. If you jump into a project and you still aren't sure whether you want to jump into the project, I promise you it's going to feel like you've got a ton of crap hanging around your neck and it's just going to weigh you down.
Speaker 1:So the idea here, the mindset is, is I'm going to jump into this. I know it's going to be tough, nothing's easy, nothing's cheap, but I'm making the decision, I'm all in, all right, and that decision right there is what's going to help give you the perseverance to get through the crappy stuff that you might see, such as I'm seeing here Right, stuff that you might see, such as I'm seeing here right. So I am telling you right now that I'm all in. I'm all in on this project. Linda and I were talking last night and she's like so what do you think? I'm like, babe, at this point I'm all in. So I'm not stopping until it's finished or until the thing blows up. So one or the other and hopefully we're not going to see anything blow up, all right. So I'm all in my mindset's there, I'm ready to go, all right.
Speaker 1:So the last part here, guys, the last point in this, is know when to give yourself some grace. You know, if you get into a project and you're struggling with it. Maybe you're struggling with the initial decision once you're in it. Maybe you're struggling with the time commitment it you're in it. Maybe you're struggling with the time commitment it takes or the money it takes, all right, you could beat yourself up on so many different facets of that challenge or that project that you lose your heart for the project. And so you got to give yourself some grace. This too shall pass. This is not a life-ending decision. God carries us through all of our walks, not just whether we're a good boy or a bad boy. All right. And so give yourself some grace, and that's a reminder. Give other people some grace too, because you know sometimes other people in your life. They're also going to find themselves in the middle of jackpots or projects that aren't going well, and you will quickly lose your judgment of them when you remember some of the jackpots you've been in All right. So, guys, those are my five points about.
Speaker 1:Okay, I got myself a jackpot here. You got to stay tuned. I'm looking forward to it. I got a boatload of work to do, as water is dripping from this rotten awning here. You probably can't see that, but I can Stay tuned. Hopefully here in a few weeks I'll be able to give you an update. We got a busy time around here with graduation parties and everything else, so I'm hoping I can work some time in and get this taken care of. But you know, god will take us through this and I'm just along for the ride.
Speaker 1:So, hey, we want to thank our sponsors. I want to thank Casey's Outdoor Solutions, quality Auto Parts, and I also want to thank our new sponsor, 4 Speed on 50, for coming alongside of us men and helping us be strong dads, even in jackpot situations like we have here. I also want to thank all you guys for listening. Stay tuned, with Strong Dads Doing Real Life. This is real life. Here, guys. We're not in a church. Not everything's perfect. This is the stuff that we find ourselves in and this is what is going to show what kind of character we have as we walk through these kind of challenges. So stay tuned. Thank you, guys. Share the show. Hopefully you'll get a laugh out of some of this. All right, because I am in the middle of a jackpot, all right? So go out there and be a strong dad.
Speaker 1:Strong dads wants to thank quality auto mart and service for being a proud sponsor of the strong dads podcast, started in 1985 and going strong for all these years. Recently, quality Auto Mart has transitioned from owners of Mark and Nancy Repke to longtime employee Fred and Lorene Venus. For all your automotive needs and golf cart needs, check out Quality Auto Mart located across from Indian Lakes on Highway 46 outside of Batesville, indiana. Strong Dads wants to thank 4 Speed on 50 for sponsoring today's show. If you like classic cars, great food and a taste of Americana, you have to visit 4 Speed on 50's Diner, located on Route 50 in Lawrenceburg, indiana. No-transcript.